49ERS STRUT AFTER THEY STUFF BEARS

Don`t think for one moment the San Francisco 49ers didn`t thoroughly enjoy kicking the Bears while they were down and rubbing their faces in the Candlestick Park dirt.

The Bears are in the playoffs and the 49ers aren`t-for the first time since 1982. This was the Niners` chance to show a national television audience they deserved a place in the postseason.

And if this mission came at the Bears` expense, all the better. There`s no love lost between these two teams.

There were a lot of smiles, handshakes and back pats in the 49ers` locker room Monday night after they embarrassed the Bears 52-14.

''There`s a lot of bad blood between us and the Bears,'' said 49ers linebacker Keith DeLong, who forced the Mark Green fumble that led to a 99-yard return by cornerback Don Griffin, second-longest in NFL history to Jack Tatum`s 104-yard return in 1972 against Green Bay. ''This has been a long and bloody rivalry. I`m absolutely certain if the roles had been reversed, they would have taken the same shot at us.

''Everybody was saying this game didn`t mean anything for us and meant everything for the Bears. People were saying the Bears were going to use us as a tuneup for the playoffs. Well, we sure gave them a tuneup.''

The Niners finished the season with six straight victories in running their record to 10-6.

''Our last six games made a statement,'' DeLong said. ''It shows we`re back. It`s just a shame we`re not in the playoffs.''

Some would say the 49ers are the best in the National Football League right now and are peaking at the right time-had they been playoff-bound.

''I feel we do have the best team,'' Griffin said. ''But that doesn`t matter. Unfortunately, we won`t have a chance to prove it.''

Griffin said his eyes lit up after DeLong`s hit popped the ball right into his waiting arms.

''I thought, `Man, I`ve got to go all the way,` '' Griffin said. ''As I started running, all I saw was their quarterback (Jim Harbaugh). I passed him and then I knew if I let him catch me from behind, I would never hear the end of it.

''It was tiring. The longest I`ve ever run was a 76-yard punt return once. My knees were wobbly in the end zone and I could barely stand up. No, there wouldn`t be any celebration penalties for me.''

Griffin said despite this overwhelming victory, most of the 49ers are still disappointed at not qualifying for the postseason.

''We have to think about next year,'' he said. ''We`ll come back and think about the Super Bowl, like we always do.''

49ers owner Eddie DeBartolo is happy with the job coach George Seifert turned in this season despite an avalanche of injuries. All three

quarterbacks-Joe Montana, Steve Young and Steve Bono-were out for parts of the season-Montana for all 16 games. The 49ers also were crippled defensively with injuries to four cornerbacks, two linebackers and two defensive linemen.

There are reports ex-coach Bill Walsh has contacted DeBartolo about rejoining the club. Some reports claim he would return in the role of a consultant while others say he is bidding to become team president in charge of football operations.

''We played three playoff teams in our last three games, and I think this team just wanted t prove a point,'' Seifert said. ''I think they proved that point tonight. There was no intention to build up the score on that last play. We wanted (fourth-string) quarterback Bill Musgrave to be able to throw the ball.''